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Waze cofounder: 'fall in love with the problem, not the solution'

"As a startup, figure out the problem you are addressing, and the users," says Waze cofounder Uri Levine. "Fall in love with the problem not the solution, and the rest will follow."

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Speaking at Techcrunch Disrupt in London, the entrepreneur -- who left Waze after it was acquired by Google in 2013 for $1.1 billion -- urged budding startups to know their problem inside and out, before even dreaming about tackling a particular market. "If you are consistent and consistent at solving the problem, you will become successful," he said. "Sometimes that means someone else bigger than you will come along and surprise you." "When you solve a big problem, you are always on the menu of someone else who is bigger than you. Essentially, we built the company in order to be successful and are addressing the issues globally."

That turned out pretty well for the Israel-based company, which launched back in 2008. The traffic app was founded on the simple premise, "people driving ahead of you know something you really need to know". Levine attests, humbly, that Google knocking on the company's door last year was "a recognition that what we were doing was the right thing". "We tried to do it the right way from the beginning, and were addressing a big problem everyone is suffering from."

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At the time of the acquisition, there were various leaked news stories claiming Facebook was looking to acquire Waze, before Google beat it to the punch. But though Levine notes it's likely a company like Waze was "on the menu of many potential acquirers", he denies ever leaking news to the press to stir interest. "Information in the press is inaccurate at times -- we did not leak any information. When you deal with the press you have to be very consistent about what you tell them." Levine left Google shortly after the acquisition, explaining he's "not the type of person to go into a large organisation". "I like things when they are small -- I'm an entrepreneur and I like revolutions."

He's an anomaly of Waze though, he says, in that most of the original team has remained with the company. This, he attributes, to founding a company that "was going to be the best working place we ever had". "It's about building the right DNA of the company -- building the company I want to work for. That's not up to investors, it's up to us."

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The "DNA document" was one of the first things the company put together, says Levine. And the team hired likeminded people -- it was not just about the skillsets, but finding people that will "match the environment you are trying to build".

For Levine -- who says he has "a dozen ideas" for new businesses on his list -- life is currently all about FeeX, which helps investors avoid hidden financial services fees. "2009 was a very bad time for investors -- in one fund I lost 20 percent. And then my end of year statement showed they were also charging me 1.5 percent for management fees. Losing 20 percent is something I can do by myself -- paying 1.5 for that, doesn't seem right."